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Lazio Beats Roma in Italian Cup Final

By Dylan Fahy May 26, 2013 10:04 pmMay 26, 2013 10:04 pm

Photo

Senad Lulic, center, with Miroslav Klose. Lulic's goal, a tap-in in the 71st minute, was the winner in Lazio's 1-0 triumph over arch rival Roma in the Italian Cup final at the Stadio Olimpico.Credit Giampiero Sposito/Reuters

Citizens of Rome went to the polls this weekend to elect their next mayor. But the current one, Gianni Alemanno, was not referring to his re-election campaign Sunday morning when he announced, “This is a huge party for our city today, and we should not disturb or ruin it.”

He was speaking about the Coppa Italia final.

Roma was set to play Lazio in a capital derby cup final in the city’s Stadio Olimpico — only the third time a local derby had decided the competition, and the first since Milan faced Inter Milan in 1977. (Juventus and Torino played the first derby final in 1938.) On Sunday, the Giallorossi were favorites to secure a record 10th Coppa Italia title and the Europa League spot that it would also bring, but the Biancocelesti of Lazio had lost only one of their six previous finals.

Alemanno insisted the voting process “would go ahead as normal,” but he spoke for all residents of the Eternal City when he said the game should display Rome in a good light. Concerns about violence between respective sets of Ultras dominated the intense buil-up to the final, since fans have a history of clashing ahead of Serie A matches. The local news media later revealed that Roma and Lazio supporters had agreed to a truce of sorts ahead of the final, allowing both groups to enter the stadium relatively peacefully. They were divided by their colors but united in jeering the Korean pop singer PSY when he performed “Gangnam Style” as part of the prematch entertainment.

The atmosphere shortly before kickoff was one of extreme excitement but also understandably tense. When Lazio midfielder Cristian Ledesma was booked after only 45 seconds for a foul on Marquinho, it set the tone for the afternoon.

Both teams had opportunities to gain an advantage early on, with Lazio going close through Senad Lulic’s initial drive and Miroslav Klose’s rebound before Roma midfielder Michael Bradley burst into the box and sent a shot over the bar. Neither side could act on short periods of dominance, and each looked reluctant to take the initiative.

When Ledesma was carried off with a suspected groin strain before the hour mark, he was replaced by Stefano Mauri. But Lazio Manager Vladimir Petkovic also shifted Hernanes into a deeper role in light of the injury, and the Brazilian worked wonders in conducting the play. Francesco Totti was quiet throughout, though he blazed a trademark free kick over the bar.

Lazio ultimately broke the deadlock with 20 minutes left. The ever-impressive Antonio Candreva, who was booed after his arrival at the club on the suspicion that he was of the Roma persuasion, bundled the ball across the face of Bogdan Lobont’s goal for Senad Lulic to knock into an empty net.

Roma fans beseeched Manager Aurelio Andreazzoli to bring Pablo Osvaldo off the bench in response, as the striker was controversially left out of the starting lineup for Mattia Destro. Osvaldo’s eventual introduction changed the face of the game, with Roma pushing everything forward in the closing stages. With Petkovic gesticulating at his watch in stoppage time, the referee Daniele Orsato blew his whistle and it was all over.

Mauri lifted the Cup to kick off a summer of celebration for Lazio that could paper over an inconsistent league campaign. The team was touted as a darkhorse to challenge Juventus and Napoli for the league title before a sharp dip in form coincided with Klose’s being sidelined through injury. In the end, Lazio finished seventh.

Rome will almost certainly fire Andreazzoli after the defeat, especially after he insisted that he would “not have done anything differently” if given the chance. He took the reigns from Zdenek Zeman in February; Milan’s Massimiliano Allegri is the favorite to succeed him.

Any fears and small episodes of violence after the match were largely extinguished, but a 200-strong contingent of Roma fans greeted the team bus with rotten eggs and, more seriously, rocks. One of them broke a window.

Dylan Fahy is an Italian football writer based in Milan. He regularly contributes to The Independent, Sky Sports Italia, Scottish Television and Football-Italia.

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